Meet The Winners: Calgary International Airport

While the conversations began at regional events, they’re far from over. In our Routes Revisited series, the voices of our award winners, exhibitors and Routes 360 members, highlight their achievements, insights and ambitions for the future. These conversations offer space for reflection and renewed perspective, sustaining the dialogue as we build momentum towards Routes World 2026.

During the Routes Americas Awards in Rio de Janeiro, Calgary International Airport (YYC) triumphed in the 5–20 Million Passengers category.

YYC handled a record 19.4 million passengers in 2025, marking a third consecutive year of growth and surpassing its pre-pandemic 2019 total by 5.5%. During the year, the airport added 15 new routes across four existing airline partners, further expanding its domestic, transborder and international network.

Positioned as North America’s most connected mid-sized airport, YYC serves as the primary international gateway for a catchment area of about six million people and plays a key role in supporting Calgary’s and Western Canada’s economies. The airport offers service to 110 nonstop destinations through 66 gates and provides connectivity across domestic and international markets.

International nonstop routes launched since 2019 have performed strongly, supported by coordinated marketing campaigns between YYC and its airline partners. To raise awareness of new services, the airport has deployed a range of promotional channels, including airport-wide digital displays, advertising through Calgary Sports and Entertainment properties, and newsletters reaching more than 31,000 subscribers. In-terminal campaigns promoting new routes are seen by an average of more than 23,000 passengers daily, providing airlines with high-profile exposure at key points in the customer journey.

“We couldn’t be more proud to be selected as winners of this award, which is so meaningful to our organization,” said Chris Hedlin, Director, Air Service Development at Calgary Airport. “We share this accomplishment with our partners, whose ongoing trust and commitment make it possible for YYC to connect more than 19 million passengers with the world. We’re excited to continue collaborating, expanding our routes and supporting our shared success.”

Hedlin said the YYC air service development team has enjoyed a strong 2026 so far. “We’ve got Etihad announcing Abu Dhabi, WestJet just announced Sao Paulo, and we’ve seen a return of Air Canada to some of our sun markets, so a great start to the year so far and hopefully we can keep that carrying on.”

Hedlin added: “International demand remains pretty big right now–we saw 14% international traffic growth in January and the expectation is that will continue throughout the year. We are really focussed on Asia and European connectivity as we’ve identified those as gaps in our market where load factors are high at the moment.”

Regarding the Routes Americas 2026 award recognition, Hedlin said: “The tweaks and the changes that we’ve made to our approach over the past year are being well received by the airlines, and that the route announcements have been working as well, these include not only new announcements but we’ve also seen existing capacity growth in other markets.”

In 2026, YYC is targeting the milestone of 20 million passengers. Building on its recent growth, the airport aims to continue expanding its network and traffic levels while maintaining a strong focus on delivering a high-quality passenger experience.